Across Borders, One Dream: 11 Friends Share Dh25 Million Big Ticket Jackpot

Sometimes luck doesn’t just change a life — it unites them. In July’s Dh25 million Big Ticket jackpot, the winning ticket wasn’t owned by one person, but by 11 expats from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh who pooled their resources, their hopes, and their luck.

The group’s leader, Mohammed Naser Balal, a 43-year-old Bangladeshi electrician living in Abu Dhabi, has been buying Big Ticket entries for 12 years without a win. “We are a total of 11 people. There is one person from Pakistan, another from India,” Balal said proudly.

When his ticket was drawn on July 3, the celebration had to wait — Balal was at work with his phone on silent. “I was busy, so I didn’t even know we had won,” he laughed. The news finally reached him, and the group’s life-changing moment began to sink in.

Balal has lived in the UAE for 14 years, and now, for the first time, his dream is within reach: “First, I want to build a home for my family in Bangladesh.” The rest, he plans to invest wisely, both in the UAE and back home.

For these 11 strangers-turned-friends, the win is more than just money — it’s proof that when people come together, even across borders, they can share not just the risk, but the reward.

One ticket. Three nations. Dh25 million. A winning moment they will never forget.